Hexagon Mosaic Charm Quilt

Really lucked upon this beautiful, crisp, never used, never washed hexagon, mosaic quilt.  Just recently had a chance to really exam it up close.  My DH and I spent a couple of hours looking at all 1613,  1 1/2 inch hexagons.  So far we have not found any two alike.  It is so much fun to look at.  When I first started looking at the round of pink hexes, I thought "are these reproductions, I know I have some of this fabric".  I went to the stash and pulled out my tub of pink repros.  I did find one, and I found a star print that I have in another color.

 

See the red one with stars, I have this in a pale gold.  I know I have it in other colors, just have to keep searching my stash. I bought a lot of reproduction fabric in the 90's.

 The light pink hexagon  in the middle is the one I have in a reproduction print.  Not sure of the manufacturer.  I know it is an early repro, I have had many years. How do I know that, I use to think I should serge the edges before I prewashed everything. Not only do I not serge anymore, I don't prewash anymore either!

Oh, the shirting fabric, I haven't even started to look through all of those.  I love shirting and have a lot. And all those browns, love, love.  I bet you can even find some you have.  Okay, everybody bring your repros over and let's look for more reproduction fabric.

Hexagon-Mosaic Quilt

I purchased this quilt recently at an antique show in Phoenix.

I loved the design, the fabric and the fact that the ends were cut out for a poster bed. I immediately dated it to c. 1900 because of the green “path” fabric which I know as chambray. I have always heard if you see chambray in any quilt it cannot be dated before 1900-1910. Is this true? I don’t claim to be an antique quilt expert by any definition.

Two fellow antique quilt collectors recently saw it and started to question the date for chambray, n. a fine lightweight fabric woven with white threads across a colored warp. Weaving is a textile production method which involves interlacing a set of longer threads (called the warp) with a set of crossing threads (called the weft). This is done on a frame or machine known as a loom. Chambray seems to be such a simple fabric weave concept, makes sense to me that it was possible long before 1900-1910.

Maybe what I am calling chambray was really called something else earlier. Gingham? Calico? Muslin? I do know the meaning of these terms have changed over the centuries.

Ad from my Montgomery Ward, Fall & Winter 1936-1937 catalog

While looking around the web trying to find more on chambray, I read a lot about denim. Seems like a close relationship to chambray. At least in 1936 chambray was sometimes more than two colors, I did not know that. I thought it was just white and one other color.

Ad from my Montgomery Ward, Fall & Winter 1936-1937 catalog

Here are a lot of close ups of the other fabric in the quilt. These are definitely early than 1900. The hexagons are finely hand sew. Paper pieced? That’s hard to tell. The hexes are about 2 ½ inches. Looks like it was all done by the same person. It has a very smooth feel on all the fabric, unwashed. The batting feels like wool, and the binding is machine sewn.

I guess I should show you the back of the quilt. This pink is one of my favorites. My master bedroom is done all in double pinks and browns.

So what do you think? Any thoughts on the quilt? What about the date? It sure would be nice if these quilts could talk!